Vietnam War

The war between Vietnam and the United States took place in three phases over a 20-year span (1955–75). During this period, Vietnam was divided into two sovereign countries—North and South Vietnam—and became the focus of America's military and political opposition to communism. North Vietnam's government combined [Page 2135]communism with nationalism and had support in both halves of Vietnam. South Vietnam tried but failed to establish democracy with American backing. Although the United States committed vast resources to the Vietnam War, there was no official American war declaration.

In the war's first phase (1955–63), the United States tried to fortify the south's government and military without sending combat troops. The second phase (1964–69) was the peak of U.S. involvement. American forces led fighting against the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and the National Liberation Front (NLF, better known as Viet Cong). The third phase (1970–75) saw reduction and withdrawal of U.S. forces, followed by a North Vietnamese victory and national reunification.

The Socialist Republic of Vietnam was established in 1975, with Hanoi, the former North Vietnamese capital city, as the new nation's capital. Saigon, the country's largest city and onetime South Vietnamese capital, became Ho Chi Minh City to honor the late Vietnamese revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh (1890–1969). The war had enormous social and cultural impacts on the diverse peoples of Vietnam and America. The consequences of those traumatic events continue into the 21st century.

Transcript

• But unrest at home continued. Vietnam was the chief issue. These student demonstrations were the same as last year, except that now the signs read ‘Nixon’ instead of ‘Johnson.’ In June, the President tried to meet the issue when he ordered a partial troop withdrawal. [March noises]
• After careful consideration with my senior civilian and military advisors, and in full consultation with the government of Vietnam, I have decided to reduce the authorized troop ceiling in Vietnam to 484,000 by December 15th.
• The first troops to be returned from Vietnam are greeted by family and friends as they arrive in Seattle, Washington. In mid-December, President Nixon said that 50,000 more troops would be withdrawn by April 15th of next year. This brought the total announced troop withdrawal to 115,000 men.